How Occupational Therapy can Prevent or Rehabilitate Injury

Occupational therapy is a discipline of allied health professionals who help adults and children recover from a wide spectrum of physical, mental and developmental challenges. Occupational therapists work closely with their patients to improve the necessary skills that are needed for daily interaction with the surrounding environment, such as work, home, school, shopping and recreational activities, which can include children playing.

Occupational Therapy Treatment Plans

The world of occupational therapy is a client-centered relationship where therapists conduct an evaluation of their patients’ needs and formulate treatment plans. In some cases, a treatment plan can include using special equipment or modifying a patient’s work environment so they can be more effective and productive, despite their temporary or permanent disability.

The field of occupational therapy is complex and intricate; however, the therapeutic methodology is often intuitive and simple. It is a fluid discipline that adjusts to a patient’s way of life and a patient’s identity. The duties of an occupational therapist is not regulated to a specific modality or a limited treatment plan, for the treatment plan of an occupational therapist can traverse rehabilitative care, acute care, injury management, elder care, child care and mental health. For example, the range of patients that an occupational therapist can work with, include surgery patients, burn patients, HIV patients, brain trauma patients and children born with disabilities.

Strategies for Effective Treatment

The primary goal of occupational therapy New Carrolton is to engage a patient so they can become more active, independent and so they can regain their essence, such as who they are in life, what their life needs are and what their expectations are. Even though treatment plans may vary, the universal objective for all occupational therapists is to help their patients have a satisfying and productive life.

Education and Training for an Occupational Therapist

Occupational therapists are highly educated and they usually have an advanced master’s degree in occupational therapy, and they are also registered or licensed to practice in a particular state. Collegiate training for occupational therapists include extensive coursework in biological science, human anatomy, physiology, orthopedics, body movement, neurological sciences, psychology and more. Occupational therapists are able to apply their vast knowledge-base to prevent injury or to rehabilitate individuals who suffer from physical, social, emotional and developmental challenges.

Summary

Some occupational therapy patients may require long-term care, and others may require short-term care. For example, some patients require retraining of their motor skills after they have undergone hip surgery, and some patients have to relearn certain tasks, such as cooking after they have suffered a hand injury from a car accident.

Most occupational therapists work in private offices and hospitals while others work in nursing facilities, schools and doctors’ offices. Occupational therapists have a skillful way of implementing critical thinking, problem solving skills and hands-on therapeutic applications. Considering that occupational therapists interact with people on a daily basis, it is essential for them to have good communication skills and good interpersonal skills. Occupational therapists have a great reputation of wanting to make a meaningful impact on their patients’ social and biological lives.